The invention relates to personal tokens when associated with a mobile telecommunication device, such as smart card associated with mobile phones, typically called SIM cards, or more specifically UICC, SIM, USIM, ISIM, R-UIM, CSIM . . . .
The assembly of a mobile telecommunication device with its personal token will be called hereafter a mobile equipment.
Nowadays, several telecommunication networks may be available for a same mobile equipment. For example, a PDA or a mobile phone may be enabled for the 2G and 3G (GSM/UMTS) network of an operator, for a WiMax network of the same or different operator, for internet communication possibly through an I-WLAN network, also called WiFi access, for CDMA2000 networks, etc. . . .
An automatic choice has to be made by the mobile equipment itself, taking into account the networks available so as to determine the preferred one of the available networks.
Some procedure has been proposed and widely implemented for the purpose of such choice by the mobile equipment, which makes use of a list of decreasingly preferred networks. This list is known as the PLMN list for Preferred List of Mobile Networks and is stored in the smart card.
The list is read by the mobile equipment, from the most desired network to the less desired network, and the first network which appears to be available is the one which gets chosen as the one to be used.
The PLMN list is also used when the mobile equipment is introduced into a foreign territory as it comprises the most preferred networks of said foreign country as well, classified also from the most desired network to the less desired network.
This solution lacks flexibility. The operators cannot cope with all possible scenarios in order to provide the best service for their customers and can therefore not fulfill all the possible business needs.
The operators do not have the ability to fully control the network selection procedures in order to transparently guide a communicating device to select the preferred access/partner network. The operators need a solution to be able to fully control these network selection procedures in order to ensure the best service for their subscribers in a user-friendly manner, i.e. without any user intervention if possible.